The Royal Library & the Royal Archives
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THE ROYAL LIBRARY & THE ROYAL ARCHIVES A GUIDE TO COLLECTIONS This is a guide to the history of the Royal Library and Royal Archives and their holdings. THE ROYAL LIBRARY serves as the By email Sovereign’s official library, and as this For the Royal Library & Royal Bindery guide shows, is a comprehensively [email protected] diverse collection. The Library’s For the Royal Archives collections also include music, coins and [email protected] medals, insignia, and sound recordings. For any other enquiry THE ROYAL ARCHIVES is a private [email protected] archive which offers public access to historical papers for educational By post: purposes and academic study. Royal Library Windsor Castle HOW TO CONTACT THE ROYAL LIBRARY Windsor sl4 inj AND ROYAL ARCHIVES It is easy to find and use the Royal By telephone: Library and Royal Archives. The team +44 (0)1753 868286 is very happy to assist in any requests or enquiries you may have and advice on access is given on page 2. First published 2016 by Royal Collection Trust York House St James’s Palace London sw1a 1bq Royal Collection Trust/ © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016 All works reproduced are Royal Collection Trust/ © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016 unless otherwise stated The image of Windsor Castle at sunset (page 3) was taken by John Freeman, 2012 Inside back cover: John Falmstead, Atlas Coelestis, 1729 (rcin 1059272) Designed by Paul Barrett Production Manager Debbie Wayment Printed and bound by Colchester Print Group Printed on UPM Fine Offset Contents Access 2 Where are the Royal Library & Royal Archives? 4 The Royal Library 6 The Royal Archives 10 Important Areas of Interest: Royal Library 12 Early printed books, manuscripts, fine bindings & private presses 12 Literature & music 16 History, antiquities, religion & the law 19 Science & exploration 26 Numismatics, medals, decorations & insignia 32 Important Areas of Interest: Royal Archives 34 Early material 34 Stuart Papers 35 Cumberland Papers 36 Georgian Papers 36 Queen Victoria Papers 40 Wardrobe Papers & Royal Household Records 41 Twentieth-Century Papers 43 Related Material in The Royal Collection 43 Protecting the Collections 44 Further Reading 45 Access Requests for access for groups or individual 4 Equitable Access: The Library and researchers should be sent to the Royal Archives aim to provide access to Library or Royal Archives via email (see a wide range of applicants, and this inside front cover). These will be processed may mean that, from time to time, by the Office and Facilities Manager. repeat applicants may be rejected in favour of those applying for the first Individuals time. The Royal Library and Royal Archives apply four principles when considering Access to the Royal Archives is granted requests for information from, or access solely at the discretion of the Keeper of to, their historic collections: The Queen’s Archives. 1 ‘Information First’: Access to Access for Groups the collections is on the basis of Requests for group visits to the Royal information sought. Library and Royal Archives will be considered on a case by case basis. In 2 Unique Content: Particular some instances, a charge will apply. At consideration will be given to the time of printing the charge is £25 applications where the material or per person. content can be found only in the Royal Library and Royal Archives. Access for Royal Household Staff Where it can be accessed elsewhere Access to the Royal Library and Royal (for example, online or in other Archives can be granted through libraries or archives), external individual contact with a member researchers will be expected to have of Royal Library or Royal Archives consulted those sources first. staff, who are happy to assist with any enquiries you may have. 3 Historical Research: Access is granted for the purpose of ‘historical research’. This term is widely defined, and recognises the huge range of subjects and themes and the myriad ways in which research is conducted. ACCESS 3 Where are the Royal Library & Royal Archives? Windsor Castle St James’s Palace The principal collection of historical A substantial art reference library is held Royal Library material is held at at York House for the curatorial sections Windsor Castle, in a series of three of Royal Collection Trust based there. rooms adapted by William IV in the 1830s. This collection consists of the Holyroodhouse majority of the Library’s historic material The Palace of Holyroodhouse contains as well as extensive collections of a small reference collection as well as reference material on History, Biography, historic material relating to Scotland Geography and Literature. and Mary, Queen of Scots. This collection is supplemented by items held in store at Windsor, Osborne House consisting of further works on History The majority of material at Osborne and Literature as well as the Royal House is Queen Victoria’s collection of Library’s collection of scientific texts. literature. At Windsor is a substantial reference collection for Royal Collection Trust Palace of Westminster sections. In addition, there is a collection The Royal Library’s collection of of Queen Victoria’s childhood literature, Hansard (a complete set from the and material from the libraries of beginning of the Parliamentary record Queen Charlotte, Queen Mary and to 1900) is at the Department of Victoria, Duchess of Kent at Frogmore the Official Record in the House of House. Commons. The Royal Archives are primarily stored in the Round Tower at Windsor Castle. They have been held there since the foundation of the Archives in 1914. opposite: Albumen print of Queen Elizabeth I’s walking-gallery, Windsor Castle, c.1880, today Room III in the Upper Library, (RCIN 2100706) WHERE ARE THE ROYAL LIBRARY & ROYAL ARCHIVES? 5 Elsewhere There are also extensive collections There are some books on long-term of items at Sandringham House and loan to the library of the University of Balmoral Castle, as well as at Clarence Aberdeen and the British Golf Museum House and Birkhall. Books in these in St Andrews. The set of the Navy List residences are the private property formerly housed on the Royal Yacht of Her Majesty The Queen and stem Britannia is now on long-term loan to from the private collections of the Army & Navy Club in London. Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, From time to time other items can be King George V, King George VI and found on short-term loan at exhibitions. their consorts. The Royal Library Historical Background Earlier Royal Libraries were presented The current Royal Library was established to the nation in 1757 by George II by William IV (r. 1830–37) in a series (the Old Royal Library) and in 1823 by of three rooms adapted from the State George IV (the King’s Library). Both Apartments at Windsor Castle. These collections now form a core part of the three rooms are referred to as the Upper British Library. Library and consist of Room I, adapted William IV did not establish the from Queen Catherine of Braganza’s Royal Library from scratch. At his state bedchamber; Room II, formerly the accession, he had access to the private private bedroom of the Tudor monarchs; libraries of George III, and of George IV and Room III, Queen Elizabeth I’s indoor at Carlton House. Both kings were walking-gallery. avid book collectors and their libraries The current Royal Library is not the contained a wide array of material. first official library of the monarchy. William IV brought these libraries together at Windsor and added to them considerably. George III’s Private Libraries Aside from the King’s Library at Buckingham House (now Buckingham Palace), a library to which he allowed scholars access, George III also maintained private libraries at Windsor Castle and Kew Palace where he kept a collection of items of personal interest. These collections were not part of the gift to the nation made by George IV in 1823, and contained the King’s personal copies of works on Agriculture, Botany, Architecture and Science among others. There are some copies in the Library Bookplate of the Royal Library used during which contain annotations in the hand the reign of William IV. A modified design of George III showing he spent time was also used by Queen Victoria reading as well as collecting these books. the royal library 7 above: Lithograph after Joseph Nash of Queen Elizabeth I’s walking-gallery, Windsor Castle, 1848, today Room III in the Upper Library (RCIN 817132) left: An example of George III’s handwriting in George Wheler, A Journey into Greece, 1682 (RCIN 1141213) The Carlton House Library books were bound or re-bound in a During his time as Prince of Wales, uniform style to suit his tastes. George IV also maintained a comprehen- sive collection of books at Carlton House. Nineteenth-Century Additions This collection consisted of works by In 1860, the Royal Library was contemporary authors as well as signifi- rearranged by Prince Albert and the cant historic material. Particular interests then Librarian, Bernard Woodward. This of the King included Military History, project saw the Library organised by Classical Literature, English Literature, subject area. This arrangement remains History and Topography. Many of these in place to the present day. 8 THE ROYAL LIBRARY & THE ROYAL ARCHIVES: A GUIDE TO COLLECTIONS The reign of Queen Victoria does so today. The Library’s collection saw major additions to the Library. has more than quadrupled in size since Subsequent Librarians oversaw its reorganisation in 1860, and currently the acquisition of new books from contains over 200,000 items. throughout the British Empire as well The Library has expanded to include as the acquisition of historical material not only material collected by members with Royal provenance or of particular of the Royal Family, but its collection historic interest.